Pakistan provoked India yet again on Saturday morning with heavy firing on Indian posts and villages along the Line of Control (LoC) in Nowshera sector of Rajouri district in Jammu and Kashmir.

indiaUpdated: Nov 19, 2016 13:16 IST

Ravi Krishnan Khajuria Hindustan Times

An Indian army soldier patrols near the line of control, after a reported cease-fire violation.(AP File Photo)

Pakistan provoked India yet again on Saturday morning with heavy firing on Indian posts and villages along the Line of Control (LoC) in Nowshera sector of Rajouri district in Jammu and Kashmir.

Rajouri is about 150 km northwest of Jammu.

“There is an unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan army in Naushera sector from 10:30 am on Saturday morning. They are firing 120 mm mortars, automatics and small arms. The Indian army is responding befittingly to the enemy fire,” Defence spokesperson Lt Col Manish Mehta said

An Intelligence source said, “Pakistan army is resorting to heavy mortar shelling in Kalsian, Jhangar and Namb Karali areas of Naushera sector.”

There has been no let up in Pakistani shelling on Indian villages and posts since New Delhi’s surgical strikes on terror launch pads across the LoC in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on September 29.

The 2003 India-Pakistan ceasefire has been reduced to tatters with Pakistani forces violating the agreement nearly 300 times since the surgical strikes.

The shelling and firing by Pakistani troops have killed 26 people, including 14 security personnel, There have been 186 ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops along the 198-km long International Border (IB) in Jammu, while over 106 violations took place along the 744-km long Line of Control (LoC).

India and Pakistan had agreed on a truce along the border in Jammu and Kashmir in 2003. On November 25, 2003, the Director Generals of Military Operations of India and Pakistan agreed to observe a ceasefire along the International Border, Line of Control and Actual Ground Position Line in Jammu and Kashmir.

On Thursday, India issued a demarche on continued ceasefire violations along the LoC by Pakistan. It was the third demarche issued this month which said Pakistani forces had committed as many as 12 such violations between November 9 and 15.